Frederick hart



(No Model.)

RHMVI?.l STEAM TURBINE.

PatentedNov. 22, 1892.

-UNITED STATES PfrEiwrl OEEICE.

IOV

l FREDERICK HART, OF POUGHKEEPSIE-NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE i AKTIEBOLAGET SEPARATOR, OF STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN.

STEAM-TUREINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 486,829, dated November 22, 189,2.

Application filed May 2, 1892. Serial No. 431.415. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FREDERICK HAEua subject of the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Poughkeepsie, in the county of Dutchess and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement `in Steam-Turbines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of steamturbines or reaction-wheels which consist of hollow arms receiving the steamat the hub and discharging it tangentially at yor near their outer ends. These lturbines rotate at a Very high speed, and have heretofore been supported, as shown in United States Letters Patent No. 379,690, dated March 20,1888, by a vertical step-journal projecting downwardly from the turbine and having a series of annular shoulders of decreasing diameter downwardly, which shoulders rest on a step-wheel having its axleV arranged Ahorizontally and provided with a like number of supportingfaces of decreasing diameter, so that each shoulder of the step-journal Iinds a rollingsupport on one of the shoulders of the stepwheel. This construction of the turbine-support is expensive, and lit is difficult and expensive to make repairs in the same, because one part cannot be renewed or repaired without readjusting the other pa'rts. For instance, should a new step-wheel be inserted the turbine is raised from the steam-nozzle which enters its hub from below, and these parts must be readjusted to produce a snug tit.

The objects of my invention are to produce a support for the turbine, which is simplerin construction and more easily adjusted for Wear and in which the wear parts can be more easily renewed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis a sectional elevation of a steam-tu rbine provided with my improvements. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section in line :l: fr, Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the steam-nozzle and connecting parts on which the turbine is supported. Figs. 4 and 5 are vertical sections showing different forms of the nozzle, hubplate, and interposed balls. Fig. 6 is a fragmentary vertical section of the nozzle. Figs. 7 and 8 are vertical sections showing modified constructions of my improvement.

vin the several figures. v A represents the hub ot' the turbine, and B the horizontal arms projecting laterally therelfrom and opening at their outer ends tan- ,which driven by the turbine'.

D represents the cavity which is formed'in fthe lower portion of the hub and which corn- Lke letters of reference refer to like parts:

=municates with the inner ends ofthehollow arms. This cavity opens downwardly vandv is surroundeddat its lower 'end by an annular :wea'r-plateE,pf steel orothersuitable material, which is screwed or otherwise secu red in a recess in the lower side of the hub.

f G represents the supply pipe which is screwed into the top plate H of the steamchest, from which steamis supplied to the tur- 2bineorhwhichforms the end portion of the steam-supply pipe. This pipe is provided in itsupperside' with a recess in which is seated a removable nozzle I, havinga central opening t, which `ycom1nu11icates with the cavity D ot' 'the hub anddelivers the steam tothe same. This nozzle is provided in its upper side with 'an `annular groove K, which surrounds the opening of the nozzle and in which are placed balls L,'upo`n which the wear-plate E of the hub rests, so that the turbine finds its support upon these balls. The nozzle is provided on its lower sidewi'th a Spherical knucklem,which rests in a correspondingly-shaped seat at the base of the recess of the steam-pipe and which permits the nozzle to align itself with the turbine. The spindle of the turbine is journaled in a bearing N, of usual construction, which other machine or'to the turbine-housing.

' The turbine is supported upon the steampipe by means of the grooved nozzle, balls,

and wear-plate and rotates freely'on its sup-y port, because the friction is reduced to a minimum by the antifriction-balls. The wear-plate of the hub, the balls, and the nozzle, either or all of them, can be readily renewed when required, so that repairs of theparts which are liable to become worn can be quickly made at small expense.

The ball-groove in the nozzle may be of any ordinary or suitable construction; but I prefer the following construction: The inner face or side la of the groove is made steeper or more abruptly inclined than the outer or side face lo', so that the balls roll in contact with the inner side of the groove on a smaller circle than, with the outer side of the groove, as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 6, and the angles of the two sides of the groove are such that the diameter of the inner circle of contact of the ball bears the same proportion to the diameter of the outer circle of contact which the distance of the inner circle of contact from the center of the nozzle, which forms the axis of rotation, bears to the Adistance of the outer circle of contact from the same center. This relative arrangement of the two sides or faces of the groove causes the balls to roll in the same without grinding friction very much as a conical wheel rolls on a conical tread o r path. This materially reduces the friction of the balls in the groove, which is of considerable importance in machines which rotate at the very high speed with which, for instance, centrifugal creamers are operated. The nozzle may have a flat lower surface resting upon a iat seat at thebase of the recess in the steam-pipe, as represented in Fig. 7, and the nozzle may be formed at the end of the steam-pipe and the ball-groovebe formed in the upper surface of this rigid nozzle, and the removable wear-plate in the lowerside of the hub may be omitted, as represented in Fig. 8; but these constructions are less desirable, because the alignment and renewal of the parts is less easily accomplished. The upper face of the nozzle is arranged in the plane of contact of the dat bearing-surface of the turbine with the balls, so that all of the contact-points of the supporting parts are arranged in the same horizontal plane, or sub stantially so, whereby gaging of the top plate is rendered unnecessary, as the parts will fit snugly when the uppermost contactpoints of the balls and the top face of the nozzle are practically in the same plane.

I claim as my inventionl. The combination, with the turbine having a at bearing-surfaceon its lower side, of a nozzle arranged below said bearing-surface, an annular lgroove formed in the upper surface of said nozzle around the opening thereof, and antifriction-balls arranged in said groove and supporting the at Vbearing-surface of the turbine, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with the turbine having a flat bearing-surface on its lower side, of antifriction-balls supporting said surface and a nozzle arranged below said bearing-surface and having an annular ball-groove formed in its upper surface around its orifice and having between said orice and said groove a flat face arranged substantially in the plane of contact of the flat bearing-surface of the turbine With the balls,'substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, with the turbine having a dat bearing-surface on its lower side, of a nozzle arranged below said bearing-surface and havingin'its upper surface an annular groove surrounding its orifice and on its under side a spherical knuckle, a supply-pipe provided with a seat in which said knuckle rests, and antifriction-balls arranged in said .groove and supporting the flat bearing-surface of the turbine, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the supply-pipe and the turbine, of a removable nozzle provided on its under side with a spherical knuckle resting in a spherical seat in the supply-pipe and provided in its upper side with an annular groove, antifriction-balls arranged Iin said groove, and a flat wear-plate secured to the under side of the turbine and bearing on said balls, substantially as set forth. 5. The combination, with the turbine, ot' a nozzle provided with a ball-groove, which has its inner and outer faces arranged at different angles, and balls arranged in said groove and supporting the turbine, substantially as set forth.

Witness my hand this 29th day of April, 1892.

l FREDERICK HART. 

